Here we look at a text of Scripture that often is misunderstood. The text reads:
How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell, to the sides of the pit. They that see thee shall narrowly look upon thee, and consider thee, saying, Is this the man that made the earth to tremble, that did shake kingdoms (Isaiah 14:12-16).
Isaiah was a prophet. His book included 66 books and it is often called the “Miniature Bible.” He spoke to God’s people about repentance, destruction, and even about the church (Isaiah 2:2-3). He also spoke to foreign nations that were fit for destruction like Assyria, Moab, Egypt, and Babylon. His work was multifaceted and is still be studied today! One of the difficult passages in his writing has to do with a man whose name, the King James Version translates as “Lucifer.” Briefly, let us examine who this man is and to what this passage is referring.
The Contextual Setting. The context stretches back to 13:1 when Isaiah wrote about “THE burden of Babylon.” Isaiah referenced the Median overthrow of Babylon in 13:17-19 and specifically directed his message in 14:4 to the “king of Babylon.” The message ends with a note of the destruction of the Chaldean nation in 14:22. The passage is in the middle of a context that begins and ends with Babylon, so the passage must have something to do with this nation.
The Grammatical Structure. Interestingly, Isaiah’s message is to Babylon’s king in Isaiah 14:4 and the pronouns continue this direction. There are eleven 2nd person pronouns in from verses 8-11. Grammatically, these seem to refer back to the king of Babylon in verse 4. There is no change in direction from verse 11 and verse 12. Therefore the “Lucifer” must be a reference to the king of Babylon.
The Attributes. Some have supposed that Lucifer is a reference Satan, but there are proofs against this view. First, this title began to be attributed to Satan after the Hebrew word heyel was translated into the latin Lucifero. The King James Version kept this translation[1] and man began to called Satan Lucifer. Hebraically, the word heyel means “morning star”[2] or “light bearer.”[3] Wayne Jackson rightly noted that “It would be strange indeed that the Holy Spirit should designate the ruler of the realm of spiritual darkness (cf. Ephesians 6:12) as ‘lightbearer.’”[4] Second, he is called a man in verse 16 and note the human-like references in verses 19-20. Satan is no mortal; he is a fallen angel (Matthew 25:41). Third, Isaiah’s words could be a prophecy about Nebuchadnezzar. Note the similarities:
Pride (Isaiah 14:11, 13-14; see Daniel 4:30).
Overpowering the nations (Isaiah 14:12; Daniel 4:22).
Humiliation (Isaiah 14:15; Daniel 4:31-33).
The context and grammar seem to suggest this passage is not about Satan and his origin. Some believe it has a secondary application to Satan’s fall (cf. Luke 10:18). This may be true, but it cannot be proven. Whatever the second emphasis of the passage is, the main thrust of it is a condemnation against the king of Babylon, maybe Nebuchadnezzar.
Applicational Lessons. What does this passage mean to us; how can we apply it?
Pride is on God’s most wanted list (Proverbs 6:17; 16:18; 1 Peter 5:5). No man has ever excelled who walked down arrogance lane. Climbing the highest mountain will only make the downfall greater and more painful.
God wants people to be like Him in character, not in essence (Genesis 3:5; Isaiah 47:8; 2 Thessalonians 2:4). God alone is divine. Searching to attain god-like status is a search that leads to hell.
Endnotes
[2]Strong.
[3]Brown-Driver-Briggs.
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